A US marine convicted of killing a transgender woman in the Philippines was deported on Sunday after being pardoned by President Rodrigo Duterte. Lance Corporal Joseph Scott Pemberton was halfway through his maximum 10-year prison term for the 2014 murder when Mr Duterte this week unexpectedly ordered his release, drawing condemnation from rights groups. Escorted by US military personnel, the 25-year-old boarded a US military plane at Manila airport, the Philippine Bureau of Immigration said. “Pemberton wishes to express his deepest gratitude to President Duterte for granting him an absolute pardon. He is extremely grateful for this act of compassion,” his lawyer Rowena Flores said in a statement.
